Freeman to Speak at Crutcher Youth 25th Anniversary Banquet
By P. Williams
The Crutcher Memorial Youth Foundation will host its milestone 25th Anniversary Celebration and Student Awards Banquet at 6 pm, on Friday, May 24th at Mt. Calvary Baptist Church, 1807 Dandridge Ave., in East Knoxville. The guest speaker Darrell S. Freeman Sr. is an entrepreneur and businessman, a Chattanooga native and graduate of Middle Tennessee State University in Murfreesboro.
Freeman started with $2,000.00 and a bunch of credit cards. He would later sell his first company, Zycron, Inc., for over $20-million. Freeman was once considered by some as “unbankable” and later co-founded a bank – Reliant Bank and has helped to take two companies public, according to his Facebook page. He records his YouTube channel, “Cockpit Conversations” with notables and various businesspersons, during flights he pilots on his small aircraft.
Freeman is Chairman of S3 Asset Management Co. and Executive Managing Director at Zycron, Inc. He also founded Pinnacle Construction Partners LLC and has headed 5 companies. Freeman currently serves on the board of 11 companies and has served as Chairman of 100 Black Men of Middle Tennessee, Inc., Chairman for Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce and Director at Reliant Bank.
Crutcher Memorial Youth Enrichment Center is a 501C3 nonprofit at 112 Lakeside St. behind Buddy’s Bar-B-Que on Magnolia Avenue. It is named for an unsung civil rights warrior – Rev. Dr. William Townsend “W.T.” Crutcher (1905-1989).
The center was established in October 1994 by his widow Willie Crutcher (1920-2017), his only child Mae Blanche Crutcher Moore, and friends Dora Wilson and James Taylor.
For over 54-years Dr. Crutcher fought from the pulpit, with support from some of his many political and social affiliations, to improve the quality of life of inner-city youth. Dr. Crutcher pastored Mt. Olive Baptist Church on Dandridge Ave. that he was instrumental in building and establishing a unified congregation.
The CMYF offers afterschool care for children in 2nd to 8th grades, and pickup from schools in its area. Director Mae Blanche Moore is a retired Knox County School’s English teacher and librarian. The staff is mostly retired, teacher volunteers. They include; Joyce Harper, Shirley Walker, Joy Robinson, and Joyce Riddle who also teaches a sewing class. Juanita Cannon teaches a weekly etiquette class, and Saundra Mitchell Woods teaches piano and keyboard lessons at the center.
In addition to the many extra-curriculum activities the children get homework assistance, reading and math tutoring, Spanish and computer lessons, fitness, nutrition, crafts, and guest presenters; all for $120 per month that includes pick-up from area schools. For more information, visit cmycenter.org.
To make a donation or reservations for the 25th Anniversary Student Awards Banquet on Friday, May 24th; email cmycenter@comcast.net; or call 865-637-7766. Your support is greatly appreciated.
